Dance of Words

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With the development of technology, we are now able to communicate in so many ways with anyone in the world. What if we could see all the words dancing in the air?

Marimba players have always fascinated me not only as virtuoso instrumentalists but also as performers who express music with such deep passion and feelings using their whole body, like dancers. I wanted the player to have fun dancing around the piece.

Classically trained in Japan, Aiko studied Jazz Composition and Film Music at Berklee College of Music. She is also an alumna of the Sundance Institute Composer’s Lab and the prestigious Henry Mancini Institute, whose performance of her original orchestral work “Fire, Tears” is available on Concord records. A recipient of the BMI Pete Carpenter Fellowship, she has worked alongside veteran Hollywood composers, and with top orchestras in Europe as well as in United States. Her compositions can be heard in several movies and commercials.

Those preparing for the 2013 Universal Marimba Competition might want to peruse this addition to the repertoire list. Dedicated to Hiromi Shigeno, “Dance of Words” is a representation of the composer’s thoughts on marimba performance that can require whole body movements.

The primary theme of the work is somewhat of a disjointed waltz presented in 5/8 and 6/8. The work explores other rhythmic ideas before reaching a short cadenza; it then makes its way back to the original-stated theme before reaching its conclusion. The work is tonal and centers on the Aeolian mode.

In general, the techniques are idiomatic, yet some passages are more challenging than others. Single independent (inside and outside), double vertical, double lateral (inside and outside), and single alternating strokes are all used.